Postal service ponders an end to door to door delivery

It's really not as bad as it sounds. Delivering mail door to door takes an enormous amount of time compared to curbside delivery or neighborhood "cluster boxes." and the USPS needs to save at least $4.5 billion a year to get out of the red.USA Today:

The proposal -- due for vote by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday -- would affect about 37 million residences and businesses.

The Postal Service spends about $30 billion annually on mail delivery, losing $15.9 billion last year alone. It does not receive federal assistance, getting revenue from postage sales, delivery services and other products. But mail service has dropped nearly 25% from 215 billion pieces delivered in 2006 to a current volume of 160 billion, says Postal Service spokeswoman Sue Brennan.

The Postmaster General's office estimates labor-intensive door-to-door delivery costs an average $353 a year. Curbside delivery averages $224; cluster boxes, just $160. The Postal Service, currently making 54 million curbside deliveries and 40 million to cluster boxes and central locations, has been moving toward collective deliveries at shopping malls, business parks and newer residential developments.

"A balanced approach to saving the Postal Service means allowing USPS to adapt to America's changing use of mail,'' Issa said in a statement. "Done right, these reforms can improve the customer experience through a more efficient Postal Service."

Postmaster General Patrick Donahue has been seeking flexibility in the way the Postal Service delivers mail, such as cutting Saturday delivery -- which drew strong public and Congressional criticism when it was proposed last year. In April, the Postal Service said it was scuttling plans to end Saturday service this summer, although ending six-day service is still eventual possible, says Ali Ahmad, communications adviser to the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which Issa chairs.

The National Letter Carriers Union, which opposes ending six-day delivery, is also against ending door-to-door delivery, which is says would hurt jobs and harm elderly and shut-ins who would have difficulty receiving mail.

I am not enamored of the idea of picking up my mail at cluster boxes. Given that I receive my pay through the mail, they could be magnets for theives when you also consider government checks that still come through the mail.

But I wouldn't mind curbside delivery. The small expense of buying a new mailbox wouldn't be a problem for me, although I can see the point about the elderly and handicapped being inconvenienced.

Congress must act this session or risk the USPS going totally bust. There seems to be momentum to get something done so perhaps the postal service can be saved yet.

It's really not as bad as it sounds. Delivering mail door to door takes an enormous amount of time compared to curbside delivery or neighborhood "cluster boxes." and the USPS needs to save at least $4.5 billion a year to get out of the red.

The proposal -- due for vote by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday -- would affect about 37 million residences and businesses.

The Postal Service spends about $30 billion annually on mail delivery, losing $15.9 billion last year alone. It does not receive federal assistance, getting revenue from postage sales, delivery services and other products. But mail service has dropped nearly 25% from 215 billion pieces delivered in 2006 to a current volume of 160 billion, says Postal Service spokeswoman Sue Brennan.

The Postmaster General's office estimates labor-intensive door-to-door delivery costs an average $353 a year. Curbside delivery averages $224; cluster boxes, just $160. The Postal Service, currently making 54 million curbside deliveries and 40 million to cluster boxes and central locations, has been moving toward collective deliveries at shopping malls, business parks and newer residential developments.

"A balanced approach to saving the Postal Service means allowing USPS to adapt to America's changing use of mail,'' Issa said in a statement. "Done right, these reforms can improve the customer experience through a more efficient Postal Service."

Postmaster General Patrick Donahue has been seeking flexibility in the way the Postal Service delivers mail, such as cutting Saturday delivery -- which drew strong public and Congressional criticism when it was proposed last year. In April, the Postal Service said it was scuttling plans to end Saturday service this summer, although ending six-day service is still eventual possible, says Ali Ahmad, communications adviser to the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which Issa chairs.

The National Letter Carriers Union, which opposes ending six-day delivery, is also against ending door-to-door delivery, which is says would hurt jobs and harm elderly and shut-ins who would have difficulty receiving mail.

I am not enamored of the idea of picking up my mail at cluster boxes. Given that I receive my pay through the mail, they could be magnets for theives when you also consider government checks that still come through the mail.

But I wouldn't mind curbside delivery. The small expense of buying a new mailbox wouldn't be a problem for me, although I can see the point about the elderly and handicapped being inconvenienced.

Congress must act this session or risk the USPS going totally bust. There seems to be momentum to get something done so perhaps the postal service can be saved yet.